Poinsettia plant named ‘Fislemon’

ABSTRACT

A new and distinct cultivar of Poinsettia plant named ‘Fislemon’, as described and illustrated, and particularly characterized by the combined features of light yellow, uniform bract color; medium sized inflorescence with weakly lobed bracts; uniform dark-green, distinctly lobed foliage; medium sized plant habit, well-branched and relatively wide; and early flowering response.

LATIN NAME OF THE GENUS AND SPECIES OF THE PLANT CLAIMED

Euphorbia pulcherrima

VARIETY DENOMINATION

Fislemon

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar ofPoinsettia plant known by the cultivar name ‘Fislemon’, and botanicallyknown as Euphorbia pulcherrima.

‘Fislemon’ is a product of a planned breeding program which had theobjective of creating new Poinsettia cultivars with white or yellowflower color in combination with dark-green foliage and good cultivationability.

‘Fislemon’ originated from a hybridization made by the inventor,Katharina Zerr, in Hillscheid, Germany, in 1996. The female parent was apropietary hybrid seedling, no. S90-602-1 (unpatented), characterized bysalmon-pink bract color, medium green foliage, and medium sized, wideand bushy plant habit. The male parent was a hybrid seedling, no.S90-502-1 (unpatented), having red bract color, dark green foliage, andearly flowering.

The seeds germinated in the spring of 1997, and the resulting seedlingswere identified by numbers. In the summer of 1997, a cutting was takenfrom each seedling, rooted and grown out for examination as floweringsingle-stem plants. ‘Fislemon’ was discovered and selected as oneflowering plant no. 6935 within the progeny of the statedcross/parentage by Katharina Zerr in the fall of 1997. After this planthad been chosen, more cuttings were taken from the original seedling andgrafted on rootstocks of the variety ‘Beckmann's Altrosa’ (U.S. PlantPat. No. 9,336), in order to transmit the branching causing agent,phytoplasma, into the clone to improve the branching causingcharacteristics. From the upper area of the successfully grafted plants,

DETAILED BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION

The plants described were grown in a greenhouse in Hillscheid, Germany,in the fall of 1999. Rooted cuttings were planted into 14 cm pots onJuly 23, and were pinched 12 days after that, leaving 8 nodes. Theminimum temperature was about 20° C. until the end of September, andabout 17-18° C. thereafter. The plants initiated flowers under naturalshort-day conditions in fall.

Observations and measurements were mainly taken at the beginning of fullflowering. In the following description color references are made to TheRoyal Horticultural Society Colour Chart (R.H.S.). The color values weredetermined indoors in a north light.

Plant:

Form.—Shrub, self-branching.

Growth habit.—Moderately compact, medium height pinched plants are bushyand wide in shape.

Height (above soil line).—32.5 cm.

Width.—55 cm.

Average number of branches.—7-9.

Average length of branches.—24-26 cm.

Stem color.—Light green, RHS 143 C.

Internodes.—35 mm in length.

Rooting.—Fast to medium, less than 20 days.

Blooming habit.—Begin under natural short day conditions in fall;botanically (cyathia open) in early December; commercially (bractscolored, marketable) in late November.

Flowering response time.—About 8.5 weeks.

Flowering season.—Up to 5 weeks or longer.

Lasting quality (shelf life).—Relatively good, about 28 days.

Foliage:

Shape.—Ovate, with straight base, medium expression of lobes, and withacute to acuminate tip.

Leaf arrangement.—Alternate.

Margin.—Entire.

Upper leaf surface.—Smooth and flat texture; only weakly veined, colorof veins: RHS 145 A.

Lower leaf surface.—Flat and smooth texture, except for the slightlyprotruding midrib and finer side veins, in a palmate pattern, the veincolor is greenish- white, RHS 145 C.

Leaf blade size.—Length 14.0 cm. Width 10.2 cm.

Color.—Uniform, dark-green green.

Mature foliage.—Upper surface RHS 139 A; lower surface, RHS 137 A.

New foliage.—Upper surface RHS 144 A to 143 A; lower surface RHS 144 A.

Leaf petiole.—Upper surface light green RHS 145 B, no anthocyanin; lowersurface greenish-white RHS 145 C.

Petiole: Length 7.5 cm; diameter 3 mm.

Aspect: The petioles are horizontally directed, with the leaf bladeshorizontally directed or slightly downwards.

Disease resistance: No special observations made.

Flowering description: Whole inflorescence with surrounding bracts:medium sized, mainly horizontally directed, young bracts slightly upwarddirected; average inflorescence height 40-50 mm.

Diameter.—About 26 cm.

Number of bracts per inflorescence 9-11 (length over 2 cm).

Size of largest bracts.—12.3 cm long, 9.3 cm wide.

Bract shape.—Ovate, with an almost straight base, only weak lobes, andwith acute to acuminate tip.

Surface texture.—Almost flat and slightly rugose (increases withmaturing of bracts); the veins are only weakly expressed on the surface,their color corresponds closely to the bract color, the base of themidrib is about RHS 145 B; the veins on the lower surface are slightlyprotruding, their color is a light, yellowish-green, approximately RHS150 C, and the base of the midrib RHS 145 A to RHS 145 B, light green.

Color.—Generally a light lemon-yellow, uniform; upper surface RHS 4 Clower surface RHS 154 D.

Petiole.—Length: 2.0 cm, light green color RHS 145 B.

Cyme.—About 10-15 cyathia, in a narrow cluster, about 20 mm wide.

Cyathium.—About 50 mm wide, 15 mm long (including peduncle and malelowers ): light grass-green color RHS 143 A to 143 C, the top is a paleyellow, RHS 4 C to RHS 4 D; one nectary per cyathium Nectar Cups: about50 mm wide, intense yellow, RHS 7 A, no anthocyanin.

Reproductive organs:

Stamens.—Quantity: about 20 in a bundle; filament length 3-4 mm;filiform shape; very light yellow, RHS 4 C.

Pollen.—Ouantity: moderate; yellow in color, RHS 12 A.

Pistils.—Style and stigma color very light yellow, RHS 4 C.

Ovaries.—Medium green, RHS 143 A, triangular, 3 ovules.

Seed set.—Under the greenhouse conditions described no spontaneous seedset was observed, but fertile when pollinated, shape and development aretypical for the species.

I claim:
 1. A new and distinct cultivar of Poinsettia plant named‘Fislemon’, as described and illustrated herein.